The Wrap by Irene Ivantcheva – translated by Holly Karapetkova

The crucified—
mocked
nailed and abandoned
is the story from 1 AD to now,
the point
of our civilization.

A brilliant concept,
with its guarantee for eternity.

Behind the scenes, always in the depths—
the Romans.
Who, as everyone knows,
are not barbarians.

Irene Ivantcheva, is a literary critic, historian, and feminist scholar. She is the author of Shores of Emotions: Voices of Women in Bulgarian Poetry and Ecrire dans la langue de l’Autre: Assia Djebaret Julia Kristeva,as well as numerous articles, essays, poems, and a literature textbook. Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, she currently lives in the United States and teaches French language and literature at the University of Cincinnati.

Holly Karapetkova’s poetry, prose, and translations from the Bulgarian have appeared recently in Prairie Schooner, Nashville Review, The Southern Review, and many other places. Her second book, Towline, won the Vern Rutsala Poetry Prize and was recently published by Cloudbank Books.